PRISONS COMMITTEE INAUGURATED IN WESTERN REGION (PAGE 42, MAY 6, 2010)

A TEN-MEMBER Western Regional Prisons Committee has been inaugurated to advise the Prisons Service Council on matters relating to the administration of prisons and the Ghana Prison Service in the region.
The committee has the Western Regional Minister, Mr Paul Evans Aidoo, as chairman, with the Western Regional Co-ordinating Director, Mr David Yaro, as member/secretary.
Other members are the Regional Prisons Commander, the Regional Chief State Attorney, the Regional Director of Health Services and representatives from the Ghana Medical Association, the Department of Social Welfare, religious bodies, the Ghana Bar Association and the Western Regional House of Chiefs.
Speaking at the inauguration of the committee in Sekondi, the Deputy Western Regional Minister, Ms Betty Busumtwi-Sam, said it had an important role to play in ensuring good management policies for prisons and the Prison Service.
She called on the members to exhibit a high sense of commitment and dedication to be able to achieve the best for prisons and the Prisons Service in the region, adding, “Let us co-operate with one another and ensure that we discharge our duties effectively and diligently.”
The Chairman of the Prisons Service Council, Air Marshal J.A. Bruce (retd), announced that the government was working diligently to complete work on the maximum security prison at Ankaful, with a capacity of 2,000, to take care of high risk prisoners throughout the country.
He said the prisons faced many challenges today, including deplorable conditions, deteriorating infrastructure, overcrowding and general despicable conditions.
He said associated with those conditions were health, social and psychological issues that did not augur well for reformation and rehabilitation.
“We must all understand that the primary and principal purpose of the prisons is to serve as reformation centres to reform and rehabilitate prisoners, rather than harden them,” Air Marshal Bruce said.
He said the council was committed to ensuring that there were some reforms in the prisons, adding that it was working at expanding the prisons in order to introduce various initiatives such as education, both formal and non-formal, and work skills to address some of those problems.
“Our objective is to help make the re-integration of prisoners back into society very meaningful,” he emphasised.
Air Marshal Bruce said the regional prisons committees were to support the council’s vision of transforming prisons into reformative institutions.